As we emerge from the more severe form of lockdown and restrictions begin to ease, many businesses are currently working out how to enable employees to return to an office environment that works for all within the restrictions that remain. HR departments are no doubt currently being inundated with information & data around how to approach the “new normal” for the office.
So what might this new office look like?
One thing’s for sure, the working world has already shifted and navigating the new workplace will involve some serious challenges. We’ll most likely see an end to the old style workplace of open plan spaces, shared kitchen facilities and vending machines, largely because these are all perceived to be of higher risk. This, coupled with the reluctance amongst many to return to the old way of working with long commutes and questionable work/life balances, means the times are definitely changing.
It’s interesting to see how some large corporates have already said they’re planning to tackle heading back to the office:
- Twitter has stated that they’re not making any major decisions yet, but that offices definitely won’t be open before September. When they do open, the landscape will be very different…
- Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg announced a few weeks ago that it was “aggressively opening up remote hiring” in July. He expects half of its workforce to do their jobs outside Facebook’s offices over the next five to 10 years.
- Amazon has also extended its work from home policy, offering Amazon employees the option to work from home through at least October.
- Barclays and WPP both announced back in April that crowded offices would become a thing of the past and flexible working the norm, with the Barclays CEO stating that with 70,000 Barclays staff now working remotely, the evidence was clear that it was possible to keep even a complex organisation such as a bank running smoothly, despite not being in the same office.
How might the new normal office operate?
Some of the key changes you might notice as an employee returning to work are:
- Only certain employees will work in the office going forward
- Working hours varied to enable staggered arrival times as well as reduced capacity in lifts
- The wearing of masks in the office may be made mandatory
- You may face temperature checks on entry into the office building
- No open plan office environment
- Reduction in or elimination of large group meetings or conferences
- Reduced in-person client meetings
- More regular deep cleaning
- No buffets or salad bars in the office canteen
- No office at all…
The CIPD has some excellent advice for returning to the office that is available here.
Calling all HR professionals…
If you’re currently puzzling through the details of how to return your workforce to the office, then have you thought about how transcription might form a useful piece of the jigsaw? We have a long history of providing transcripts for disciplinary hearings and other HR meetings, and are now being approached by clients to provide transcripts for meetings specifically relating to post-Covid return to work.
You may be running many meetings discussing the next stages and agreeing on the outcomes, and a transcript of these meetings will produce a working document that is concise & easy for your employees to understand & follow. We’re already helping our clients provide their staff with the invaluable information they need to help them return to work safely and effectively.
If you’d like to know more, please email alex@fionashipley.com.